After the Vows
by WhosInTheAttic
Summary: It's the morning after their wedding, and the Doctor has something special to share with Rose; if he can just get out one important question.


The Doctor was smiling up at Rose, biting his lower lip slightly. She smiled back, looking down at him as he pressed a kiss to the left of her navel. He was draped across her legs, the warmth of his bare flesh tantalizing her, the feel of his chest hair tickling her exposed thighs, causing her to squirm under his touch. He was propped up on his left elbow, his right hand curled around the curve of her hip; he squeezed her gently and placed another kiss beside her navel. "Rose," he whispered. She looked down at him expectantly.

"What?" her voice was soft and delicate.

He repositioned himself so that his arms were slightly crossed over her, his fingers interlocked over her stomach and his chin resting on the back of his hand. "The ceremony was beautiful, wasn't it?"

"Yeah. It really was." Rose cast a glance at the crumpled wedding dress on the floor.

"Your mother cried."

" 's not every day your only daughter marries the love of her life, y'know." The Doctor grinned at that, and moved his hands aside to kiss her yet again, his lips curling into a smile against her flesh. He began to work his way up the length of her body, his mouth moving softly across the valley between her breasts until he reached her collarbone; his fingers ever-so-gently brushed the outer swell of her breasts. He was fully over her then, skin to skin, propped on his elbows again. He's tucked so perfectly against her; Rose has a thought for a moment that they are like two puzzle pieces, perfectly made for each other.

"Quite right," he says, reaching to tuck her hair behind her ear. "And, I was thinking, Rose,"

"Yeah?" she said sweetly, before wriggling against him. "What were you thinking?" she said darkly, smiling with her tongue between her teeth at the memories of the night before.

The Doctor acted (mostly) unfazed, leaned to kiss her lightly on the lips, and then said, "I would like to tell you something very important." His brown eyes peered into hers.

"What's that, Doctor?" she said almost in a whisper. The look in her eyes made his human heart flutter, and suddenly his gob was off and away.

"Well, normally there'd be a ceremony, and your parents would give consent, but after yesterday...I mean, they already did, didn't they? We could call them if you like, and—"

"Doctor?" she interrupted gently. "You wanted to tell me something?"

"Right. Sorry. Yes. Yes, I do want to tell you something. About this ceremony; it's a wedding ceremony, from Gallifrey. I'd like to—I mean, would you—" He looked at her lips, but she could still see the shades of sadness in his eyes.

"Yes," she says, craning her neck forward to kiss him. "How do we have this wedding?" she asks tenderly, brushing his cheek with the backs of her fingers before opening her hand to palm his cheek and run her thumb along his sideburn. He smiles a genuine smile before leaning over and reaching for the bow tie from his tuxedo.

"First," he says, "take this end," he places one end of the tie in her palm and she grips it. "Now do as I do," he takes the other and begins to wind it around his fist. She follows until their hands are brushing against one another. "Now this next bit is so, so important Rose. I'm going to tell you something, something you must never ever forget, and never ever tell."

Rose's breath is trembling slightly at the anticipation. She was seeing her Doctor laid bare in a way she never had before, and she wasn't just thinking about all his exposed skin. "I love you, Doctor." she said.

"I love you, too Rose Tyler," he said before he leaned down to her ear, his chest pressed to hers; his breath against her skin sending chills over her flesh, the air escaping him as he uttered the syllables and cadence of a language that lived on in this universe only through him. The words seemed to snake down into Rose and bury themselves in her heart, coil themselves around her mind in a warm embrace. It felt like coming home after a long time being away, mixed with the sensation of fresh spring air entering a house that's been shut up all winter. Her eyes filled with tears, and she felt the Doctor's cheek move across hers, his lips moving to press softly to hers for a moment, each parting hesitantly for a moment before Rose finally caressed his lower lip with her tongue, seeking further entrance. He slid his tongue across hers for a moment before breaking the kiss. He tucked his elbows into her sides, so that she was enveloped in the warmth of his embrace.

" 's beautiful," she whispered, "What did you say?"

"It's my name," he whispered, kissing her again. She smiled against his mouth, which made him smile in turn. Tears slipped from Rose's eyes and her heart felt as though it might swell to bursting. For all those times he wouldn't talk, and all the times he talked without saying anything, she knew what this meant; him sharing his best-kept secret with her. She felt his lips trail down her jaw and to her neck, tongue making swirls against her flesh. The feeling gave her chills, and she turned her head into him, pressing her cheek to his as she whispered his name back to him and added—breathily—with so much emotion behind it, "I love you with all of me."

The Doctor felt his chest tighten as the shapes of her words burrowed into his ear. He kissed her lips again, then pulled back to look her in the eyes, "How long are you gonna stay with me?" he asked, eyes shining, the backs of his fingers stroking at her jaw.

"Forever," she peered into his eyes and smiled, running her hand along his ribs and curling her fingers into the small of his back. He tensed slightly as she passed over his ticklish spots, which only made her smile grow. She pressed her hips against him and leaned up to recapture his mouth; she kissed him languidly, and savored the feel of his tongue sliding past her lips.

Her hands were at his waist, and as he pushed into her, he made a sound in his throat that was almost a growl while she whimpered into his mouth. She gasped as he began to move, and one of her hands crept down to clutch his bum. The Doctor soon fell into a rhythm of slow, firm strokes, and Rose rolled her hips to match his movements. Her thighs held his hips, and she curled her legs around him, curling her toes against his calves. He broke the kiss and propped himself up to watch her face as he moved.

He looked into Rose's honey-colored eyes as he made love to her, watched her sigh and whimper and bite her lip. "Rose," he said softly, pleasure knitting its way into the sounds, "You, are, beautiful," he said, pausing as he moved into her, and reached up with one hand to cup her cheek. He stilled for a moment, and said, "You saved me," and the way she looked up at him, he knew. He knew that _she _knew that he worshiped her in that moment. He wanted to spend the rest of his life worshiping Rose Tyler. He began to move again, faster this time; she moaned beneath him.

The feel of him inside her was almost too much. Sometimes when they made love, Rose could swear she felt _him, _not just his body against her and inside of her, but everything the Doctor was washing over her in waves, soaking into her skin, boring into the heart of her. This was one of those moments, and as he sped up his movements, sounds of pleasure escaped from her throat. His hand moved from her cheek to her temple, tracing small circles into her skin; even as a human, this action had meaning for him, though the function was no longer what it once was. Rose mirrored his gesture, bringing her fingers to his temple as well. He sighed at the contact and leaned into her touch, turning to place a kiss against her palm. The waves of _Doctor _washed over her more intensely than ever before, and she cried out at the sensation.

The Doctor pressed himself to her, fingers still at each other's temples. His other hand skated down the smooth skin of Rose's torso, and gripped her thigh. He raised it higher on his hip, and she curled her foot into his thigh. The change in angle made him growl against her neck. _More! _He felt her need vibrate along the tenuous connection they created. He began to move faster, and as he rocked his hips into her, her cries grew louder between ragged breaths. He propped himself up again; his (very human) male pride surged at the feel of her body's response, and he wondered if Rose could see it written in the lines of his face.

His pace was perfect, and Rose could feel herself nearing the precipice of orgasm. "Doctor!" she called out, not missing the nearly-smug expression he wore as she keened beneath him, her fingers curling against his temple. A few more deep thrusts, and Rose was tumbling into oblivion. Except that she wasn't. She felt as though she was tumbling into him, spiraling end over end, awash in his warmth and love. She could smell his desire in the air all around her and reached out to the sensation.

His rhythm fell apart at the sensation of Rose against his mind. He groaned at her intimate touch, and as she curiously stroked him, her name echoed in his mind. It was then that his human body gave way, his own release washing over him, spilling into his wife. Rose cried out softly beneath him, mirroring him as he slid his fingers from her temples; he collapsed on top of her, wrapped in her embrace.

For several minutes, they laid panting against each other, Rose lazily stroking his back. They were both sweaty and sated. After several moments, Rose spoke—almost a sigh—against his shoulder, "That was—we've never…been like _that." _She could feel him smiling into her skin.

He had realized quickly that his telepathy had been stunted by the metacrisis, and he had been concerned that he wouldn't be able to share this with Rose, to make love to her like a proper Time Lord. He had tried numerous times to make the connection, and was sure she'd felt it, but never like this.

"It was—how…? What," she sighed, "_was _that?"

The Doctor pulled back and looked her in the eye, "_That," _he grinned with the next words, "my _wife, _was the power of a name."


End file.
